Video artifacts

[emac kinda guy]

I'm suddenly get a lot of strange dots in my display. Letters missing pixels. Miscellaneous dots on the screen. My kids game was dropping polynominals.

Does this mean that my video card is going? Could it be something else.

I'm running 10.3.9 on a 1.25 GHz G4 e-mac.

[Foxglove9]

Usually artifacts tend to come from ram issues on the video card. Have you installed any new programs or done anything different since it started?

One possible solution is the basics. Repairing permissions, repairing disk, resetting PRAM, and resetting firmware. When I was overclocking an older video card I ran into problems like that. Resetting the firmware worked.

Or it could be other things that's causing your problems...

[emac kinda guy]

We just installed World of Warcraft and have had many crashes. Have reset permissions and repaired the disk. I'll try the PRAM. Not sure how to reset firmware - but I'll look

Thanks


Usually artifacts tend to come from ram issues on the video card. Have you installed any new programs or done anything different since it started?

One possible solution is the basics. Repairing permissions, repairing disk, resetting PRAM, and resetting firmware. When I was overclocking an older video card I ran into problems like that. Resetting the firmware worked.

Or it could be other things that's causing your problems...

[disconap]

WoW may be too much for your machine. But you can try downloading ATIccelerator and seeing if bringing down the RAM or GPU speed gets rid of the artifacts...

http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/15849

[longofest]

bad news man!!!

http://macintouch.com/readerreports/emac/topic4116.html#mar02

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=301339&tstart=0%3Cbr

Will be a news story on this issue soon.

[babble]

WoW will run fine on your eMac. I've got two of them at home and played my fair share of it.

I had some problem with my screen on one of the eMac, and got the motherboard replaced on AppleCare. Don'T know if it was related to the capacitors or not.

[longofest]

http://www.macrumors.com/images/macrumorsthreadlogo.gif (http://www.macrumors.com)

It appears as though a significant number of 1.25 Ghz eMac users are suffering from logic board breakdowns that cause video to become distorted (http://www.swinglight.com%2Fjibber.jpg&t=1146515407). Although Apple's included diagnostic utilities indicate that all hardware is operating normally, opening up the machines reveals bulging and cracked capacitors (http://www.sells.com/ebay/eMac/6.JPG).

Most of the issues are occurring out of the eMac's 1-year standard warranty, and Apple has yet to set up any sort of extended repair service (although some are having limited success getting their machines repaired for free by noting the Apple discussion thread).

Raw Data:
Apple Discussion Board (http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=301339&tstart=0%3Cbr)
Macintouch User Reports (http://macintouch.com/readerreports/emac/topic4116.html#mar02)

[iriejedi]

Probably the same capacitors Dell uses. At our company our Optiplex GX270s and other models were suffering from many blown and buldging capacitors. Dell claimed it was a bad lot and fixed many monther boards in 24 hours, a few on site.

So I guess there is a new QC manager position opening at Capacitor Corp!

[longofest]

Probably the same capacitors Dell uses. At our company our Optiplex GX270s and other models were suffering from many blown and buldging capacitors. Dell claimed it was a bad lot and fixed many monther boards in 24 hours, a few on site.

So I guess there is a new QC manager position opening at Capacitor Corp!

Yeah, this kind of thing is to be expected with the lower-end units of any manufacturer. However, to this point Apple isn't (on a large scale) accepting back the eMacs and fixing the logic boards. At least Dell acknowledged the problem. It looks like it is the same problem here (other people aren't having issues as well, so it was a bad lot off the assembly line it looks like).

[nagromme]

I won't argue against it being non-insignificant, but Apple has often in the past stepped up to create a program for post-warranty repairs when such an issue emerges. Hopefully they will do the same in this case.

Also "significant numbers" is hard to quantify: if even 1% of owners had a problem, they'd still flood forums seeking solutions. (And still deserve solutions.)

[Marble]

I *just* sent in a 1ghz TiBook that was experiencing this "gibber." Usually, the effect could be reduced by squeezing the corner of the PB by the left screen hinge, but eventually it became unmanagable and I took the $320 hit to repair it. The (very green) tech told me it might be a faulty inverter or a problem with the video card. Sounds similar to what's been happening here.

[mjstew33]

I don't think Apple will do anything about it, that's just my feeling.

A shame, really. :(

[emac kinda guy]

Yeah, this kind of thing is to be expected with the lower-end units of any manufacturer. However, to this point Apple isn't (on a large scale) accepting back the eMacs and fixing the logic boards. At least Dell acknowledged the problem. It looks like it is the same problem here (other people aren't having issues as well, so it was a bad lot off the assembly line it looks like).

Excuse me. To be expected?

[emac kinda guy]

WoW may be too much for your machine. But you can try downloading ATIccelerator and seeing if bringing down the RAM or GPU speed gets rid of the artifacts...

http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/15849

This made a significant difference in the display. Much less artifacts. But still some.

The rest of this thread has me quite concerned though. Apple shareholders voted down a resolution about being responsible for the products they make last week.

I may be reevaluating my computing preferences.

Backing data up now.

[longofest]

Excuse me. To be expected?

I think you might be taking my point wrong. The fact that every hardware manufacturer ends up having its lower-end lines having higher percentage of defects would make one expect that even Apple would be susceptible to this phenonmenon. That being said, it does not excuse a manufacturer from dealing with the issue when it becomes more than simply an isolated case here and there, as these situations seem to becoming with the eMac.

Apple doesn't get off the hook. You have a perfectly reasonable expectation that your computer should be still running just fine, and if it isn't then it is Apple's fault.

[Wellander]

Hi,
Is this the same type of issue that the imac g5 had?
Sorry for the off topic stuff.

[longofest]

Hi,
Is this the same type of issue that the imac g5 had?
Sorry for the off topic stuff.

With the fans? or power supply?

Either way, this is a bit worse because this is happening outside of most users' 1 year warranty. Most of those iMac G5's were still under the 1 year warranty. However, you are correct in noting that this is not the first time that Apple has had a large number of units ship with some kind of issue.

[Wellander]

Hi,
The bad caps issue.
Like http://www.apple.com/support/imac/repairextensionprogram/
This issue?

[amdp]

I *just* sent in a 1ghz TiBook that was experiencing this "gibber." Usually, the effect could be reduced by squeezing the corner of the PB by the left screen hinge, but eventually it became unmanagable and I took the $320 hit to repair it. The (very green) tech told me it might be a faulty inverter or a problem with the video card. Sounds similar to what's been happening here.


Marble, I dealt with a 1 GHz TiBook last year that had the same problem. When we pinched the corner of the casing, the effect decreased. I was in a laboratory and we were able to zoom in with a photo microscope to some connector pins on the logic board that were becoming loose-- pushing down on them solved the problem. A collegue of mine had the skill and equipment to solder the pins back onto the board. It worked for a while... until the pins separated from the board again after the system heated up.

I actually also had one of the eMacs with the problem capacitors. It's very easy to diagnose: The computer freezes A LOT, and I'm not talking modern-day freezes, I mean old-school where you have to hold the power button to turn the system off. When you inspect capactors they are leaky or bulgy. I was able to take my eMac into the Apple Store and explain to them what was shared on the eMac forum at Apple support and Apple replaced the logic board free of charge even though it was out of warranty. My situation seemed to have been an abnormality as far as Apple being so willing to fix it though.

[Marble]

Marble, I dealt with a 1 GHz TiBook last year that had the same problem. When we pinched the corner of the casing, the effect decreased. I was in a laboratory and we were able to zoom in with a photo microscope to some connector pins on the logic board that were becoming loose-- pushing down on them solved the problem. A collegue of mine had the skill and equipment to solder the pins back onto the board. It worked for a while... until the pins separated from the board again after the system heated up.

Hmm. Something about being in Tucson, AZ ;).

I hope the folks at Apple are as savvy as you were in identifying the problem. It sounds like they may have to replace the board to really solve it.

[swingerofbirch]

I don't remember what language we can use here, so I'll just say, Apple really fudged this one up.

I have an eMac as well that has had its share of problems and I am now concerned about this as my warranty will expire soon.

I went through the iBook logic board "me to Apple there is a systemic problem Apple to me it's all in your head Me no it's not Apple Ok you were right it's a logic board defect but we're gonna screw you over anyway and claim water damage" fiasco and I don't wanna again.

Does Apple have spotty quality worse than other PC makers, or do we just bring it to the light cos we have a community?

[ipodml]

i remember my emac - it was my first mac that i had - to be honest it was better than the pc before it but it sure was loud - in fact i had to switch it off before 12 so people could sleep in my flat - they did a petition for that and i had the superdrive replaced over 10 times. Now my friend has an emac which is his first mac and that has these video artifacts - the tried taking to apple in regent street and they don't care. So i went there with him and got it sorted. We got it fixed and it still seems to show the artifacts on the screen. :(

[Scarlet Fever]

I'm suddenly get a lot of strange dots in my display. Letters missing pixels. Miscellaneous dots on the screen. My kids game was dropping polynominals.
Does this mean that my video card is going? Could it be something else.
I'm running 10.3.9 on a 1.25 GHz G4 e-mac.bet you never thought a problem with the display on your eMac would become Page 2 news, hey :p

This doesn't sound like a good situation for Apple to be in. From my past experiences with Apple and other computers, when a logic board gets replaced, there are never ending problems after that. I think they should be replacing logic boards for free, or at least for a discount, seeing that it is a manufacturing defect.

[edenwaith]

I have a 1.25 GHz eMac I bought in 2004, and I haven't had any problems with it yet! :)

[zelman]

I won't argue against it being non-insignificant, but Apple has often in the past stepped up to create a program for post-warranty repairs when such an issue emerges. Hopefully they will do the same in this case.

Also "significant numbers" is hard to quantify: if even 1% of owners had a problem, they'd still flood forums seeking solutions. (And still deserve solutions.)

Not really "when such an issue emerges." More like a year or so later. I had my iBook G3 logic board replaced 3 times before they extended the logic board warranty, and by the second replacement it was a known problem on message boards.

[Warbrain]

My grandfather has an eMac that he bought since it had an audio in and I remember going to his house, asking where it was since his iBook was in it's place, and him saying that the logic board had problems. I think that he lucked out and that it happened during the warranty.

Granted, I'm a bit doubtful about anything from Apple right now considering that my iBook had a logic board failure within two months of purchase.

[RobertHammen]

I posted the original links to the pictures at Macintouch.
The page2 link currently posted in the news article is broken. You should link to:

http://www.sells.com/eBay/eMac/1.JPG
http://www.sells.com/eBay/eMac/2.JPG
http://www.sells.com/eBay/eMac/3.JPG
http://www.sells.com/eBay/eMac/4.JPG
http://www.sells.com/eBay/eMac/5.JPG
http://www.sells.com/eBay/eMac/6.JPG
http://www.sells.com/eBay/eMac/7.JPG

I updated some of the picture links with better pics (new camera!) of the most recent failure/victim.

I have been emailing my Apple account executive regarding this issue... she got someone in hardware engineering involved, but Apple has been a black hole about this issue - data goes in, but no news/information comes out. So far, 4 out of 18 machines have experienced this problem, though I would expect to find more defective machines if we actually disassembled them...

--Robert

[longofest]

I posted the original links to the pictures at Macintouch.
The page2 link currently posted in the news article is broken. You should link to:

http://www.sells.com/eBay/eMac/1.JPG
http://www.sells.com/eBay/eMac/2.JPG
http://www.sells.com/eBay/eMac/3.JPG
http://www.sells.com/eBay/eMac/4.JPG
http://www.sells.com/eBay/eMac/5.JPG
http://www.sells.com/eBay/eMac/6.JPG
http://www.sells.com/eBay/eMac/7.JPG

I updated some of the picture links with better pics (new camera!) of the most recent failure/victim.

I have been emailing my Apple account executive regarding this issue... she got someone in hardware engineering involved, but Apple has been a black hole about this issue - data goes in, but no news/information comes out. So far, 4 out of 18 machines have experienced this problem, though I would expect to find more defective machines if we actually disassembled them...

--Robert

Link doesn't appear to be broken in the story. It goes to jpg #6 that you posted, but thanks for posting the other ones in the forums. Didn't want to do too much direct linking for the sake of your bandwidth. I was going to mirror them here, but the images are too big to submit to our forums as an attachment, which is how we typically mirror stuff (and I was on a PC, so I didn't have Preview to rescale the image).

[job]

I've got an eMac from the summer of '04 (August.)

It appears to be within the time frame of the reported problems, but I haven't experienced any yet. Knock on wood.

I do have Applecare though and activated it right before my one year warrenty ran out.

If I do encounter any issues, do you guys think that Applecare will fix it without cost?

[Wellander]

I've got an eMac from the summer of '04 (August.)

It appears to be within the time frame of the reported problems, but I haven't experienced any yet. Knock on wood.

I do have Applecare though and activated it right before my one year warrenty ran out.

If I do encounter any issues, do you guys think that Applecare will fix it without cost?
Hi,
If you bought applecare I think that apple will fix it (if you have the problem) for free.(or they should)

[pkkrusty]

This should be Page 1 news. It's proven fact, not a rumor and wrthy of people's attention. I can't say anything about Apple's responsibility in this situation that hasn't already been said.

Maybe the right email or website will reach Steve and he'll crack down on the jack-a-- who is making the decision to sweep this under the rug.

Here's hoping.

[thomed]

Apple seem to have problems when it comes to video cards. My 17" 1.67 Powerbook suddenly ran into problems several weeks ago.

Whilst working in Photoshop, suddenly a number of vertical lines appeared on the screen. These lines did not disappear, even after reboot. In fact, they are very much apparent throughout the boot process, and when I boot into any version of Linux. So I assumed that this was a serious hardware problem. I checked out the discussion boards on Apple.com and sure enough a huge bunch of other people had the same problem.

So a hardware problem, these things happen. Particularly when there's a lot of heat involved. And as all PB owners know, there's a heck of a lot of heat.

However, what has really blown my mind is just how BAD Apple have been in dealing with the problem. I have AppleCare. And I have ProCare, since I use the machine for my business. I would have expected the problem to be fixed within a week.

Yet, it has taken me 7 weeks to get the problem acknowledged by the Apple folks in the UK. I'm now waiting for replacement parts, before they replace the Screen Unit. Fair enough.

Except a cursory inspection of Apple's own discussion board shows that when this problem occurs it's not actually the Screen that has failed. The logic board needs replacing instead. But Apple staff are not allowed to comment on Discussion Board items. So I have to get the screen replaced, and then get the logic board replaced later. But no, they can't order both at once. So that'll be another week sir.

Because the problem doesn't actually affect my ability to work, I'm not that bothered. However, Apple should be worried about crucifying their brand. At work we laugh daily about Apple's innability to fix this fairly simple problem. We've even placed bets on how much longer it'll take.

People laughing at Apple cannot be a good thing. There is no shortage of other people prepared to come forward with sob-stories about other mac issues or iPod deaths that have gone unresolved.

I found the news about Dell vs Apple on the markets amusing. I own a Dell laptop too. It suffered a major hard drive failure two weeks ago. The next day; a nice man from Dell arrived with a new laptop (just in case) and a new drive. Perfect. What's more, the price of the laptop, including care, was identical.

I can't help but feel this is a case of "Honey, I blew up the brand!". When will Apple admit that it makes mistakes when it comes to hardware design?

[nagromme]

Does Apple have spotty quality worse than other PC makers, or do we just bring it to the light cos we have a community?
Apple's hardware reliability stats and tech support effectiveness stats top the industry. But people post in forums when they have a problem, not to say "my eMac's screen is still fine." So any product's online community will make you think problems are far more common than reality.

But Apple being the best of the industry only means they are the best of a BAD industry, and whether your problem is rare or not, you still need it fixed.

Oh, and my eMac's screen is still fine :)

[alexprice]

Why is this on page2, isn't this page for news rumors not complaints? Surely the hardware section of the forums is better for this thread.

[emac kinda guy]

I received mine in August 04. There was actually quite a delay in delivery.

[Marlon_JBT]

I hope the newer 1.42GHz models aren't affected. :( If anything happens to my cousin's eMac, I'm going to hear it...

but then again... I've got a problem free W8611 MBP.... and a problem free 12" PB, and 2 problem free 20GB 4.5G iPods....

:Prays to the Mac gods that her eMac is perfect, and will remain that way:

:)

[cosmichobo]

Having spent the last few months not only following, but being directly involved in this "story", I feel a few points should be made.

The eMacs being affected are all 1.25Ghz models, built between April - December 2004, in the USA, China, and Czech factories. All present with swollen/leaking caps, and the problems experienced are not simply video problems - the entire system freezes and requires a hard shutdown. The problem gradually worsens until you are lucky to get through startup without a freeze occuring. The only resolution is to get a new logic board at a cost of $400 to $900 depending on who you ask.

The problem was first experienced in Apple's iMac G5, which was manufactured in a very similar timeframe to the eMacs that are affected. The iMac, for whatever reasons, presented with problems very soon after they were sold, whereas the eMacs have only started to show the problems since around Dec-Jan 2006 - around 18 months after they were sold.

Although Apple did impliment a repair program for the much more expensive iMac, they have unofficially said that not enough eMac owners are reporting the problem for them to consider a similar program. I suspect that the bad caps involved will all sooner or alter fail, but sadly a lot of people in the mean time have a large white paperweight sitting on their desks.

I myself tried talking to Apple Australia about the problem, pointing out the thread on Apple's Discussion Forum with many thousands of "hits", but they were not interested. I thus decided to try a different approach, and emailed s_jobs@apple.com with a polite query about the matter. Apple Australia then contacted me and agreed to replace my eMac's logic board after it had been examined by an Apple repairer.

I suggest anyone with an eMac 1.25 open the inspection hatch on the belly of the computer and check out the capacitors that are visible near the RAM slots. If you are already having problems, call Apple, post on the Discussions forum, and email Steve.

[dunnonuthin]

Take a look at the iTunes window in this picture -- the problem is clearly a result of listening to Christopher Cross... It's just an invitation for trouble.

http://www.macrumors.com/c.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.swinglight.com%2Fjibber.jpg&t=1146783602

[emac kinda guy]

Take a look at the iTunes window in this picture -- the problem is clearly a result of listening to Christopher Cross... It's just an invitation for trouble.

http://www.macrumors.com/c.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.swinglight.com%2Fjibber.jpg&t=1146783602

OMG Mine is not nearly that bad, I get the Chris Cross reference though. MMM

[Rod76]

I had the logic board replaced on my eMac about 8 months ago and since then its been running fine. It was displaying the graphic card glitch that so many have reported. Apple was quick to fix it, although their in store service department forgot to connect Speakers, Power Button, and Power Light to the logic board; you would think Apple would have better Q.C., I'm a custom PC builder and remedied the problem in about 15 minutes.

[Maxx Power]

I had the logic board replaced on my eMac about 8 months ago and since then its been running fine. It was displaying the graphic card glitch that so many have reported. Apple was quick to fix it, although their in store service department forgot to connect Speakers, Power Button, and Power Light to the logic board; you would think Apple would have better Q.C., I'm a custom PC builder and remedied the problem in about 15 minutes.

Quality control, that's always a good laugh, the cousin of Public Relations.

Problem with QC is that it is only for show, to put it this way, given the standard technician wage, personal expectations are the same whether you work for Apple or Dell or MDG. Unless you are a well-paid lab tech, typically, a regular repair tech would always look for greener pastures, meaning less stringent hours, better pay, and/or less supervising over the shoulders. And since they float around from company to company so fast, and the amount of repairs they do is enormous, quality control simply can't keep up. Kinda like our government and modern law making.

[MaaseyRacer]

What does everyone expect. It is an eMac, its cost when it was made $799-$999. Everyone expects something in this industry to be as cheap as possible. The higher demand for the cheaper machines that are capable of doing the tasks we require them to do the more likely things like this are to happen. I also do not think this eMac thing is that big, as I have not seen this issue yet at the Authorized Service center I work at. It is not like the iMac issue which is just out of control at this point. The first thing I do when I get a 1.6-20Ghz iMac is open it up to see if it has blown or swollen capacitors.
In the case of the eMac the way I see it is, you get what you pay for. If you are upset that you out of warranty eMac is failing, then you should probably consider AppleCare with your next computer purchase.

[081440]

What does everyone expect. It is an eMac, its cost when it was made $799-$999. Everyone expects something in this industry to be as cheap as possible. The higher demand for the cheaper machines that are capable of doing the tasks we require them to do the more likely things like this are to happen. I also do not think this eMac thing is that big, as I have not seen this issue yet at the Authorized Service center I work at. It is not like the iMac issue which is just out of control at this point. The first thing I do when I get a 1.6-20Ghz iMac is open it up to see if it has blown or swollen capacitors.
In the case of the eMac the way I see it is, you get what you pay for. If you are upset that you out of warranty eMac is failing, then you should probably consider AppleCare with your next computer purchase.

WOW, that's a little harsh....

But a little off topic now... do people think that the eMac will make the Intel transition? :confused:

If it does will it retain its CRT or go to an LCD? :confused: (with a lot of weights in the rear to keep 'em from walking.) :p

[caveman_uk]

In the case of the eMac the way I see it is, you get what you pay for. If you are upset that you out of warranty eMac is failing, then you should probably consider AppleCare with your next computer purchase.
What people pay for is a computer that works for rather more than year and a bit. It's the same for an eMac or a top of the line Powermac. If Applecare is to be considered essential then that doesn't say much for the quality of Apple's products now does it?

[cait-sith]

In the case of the eMac the way I see it is, you get what you pay for. If you are upset that you out of warranty eMac is failing, then you should probably consider AppleCare with your next computer purchase.

So 1000$ = crap that breaks after a year, 1700$ = good machine that doesn't break after a year. That makes sense. :rolleyes: It's not like we are talking about a 5$ watch from a guy on the street versus a 1000$ rolex.

[Maxx Power]

So 1000$ = crap that breaks after a year, 1700$ = good machine that doesn't break after a year. That makes sense. :rolleyes: It's not like we are talking about a 5$ watch from a guy on the street versus a 1000$ rolex.

"You pay for what you get" is pure crap. You paid for the features, speeds, capacities and integration, not the breakage. Therefore, you paid less meaning you will be getting less features, speeds, capacities for your money, not less durable. But you know, if that was the case, you better not buy a mac for a while, because "you pay for what you get" and you are not the one who decides what is the ratio of pay vs. get.

[ryannel2003]

I have one of these 1.25GHz eMac's and I checked the capacitors and nothing was buldging or leaking. Most likely, I'll check again in the next couple of weeks and make sure they aren't leaking or anything.

O and this crap about how you get what your pay for is ********. Having payed $799 for my eMac, I expect it to last a lot longer than 1.5 years. Heck I have a iMac 233MHz G3 still chugging along after 8 years. No problems with that machine. That right there shows you the difference in the Apple machines of today and yesterday. Also, people saying you shoulda got AppleCare is stupid too. Some people (like myself) couldn't afford AppleCare, and people who didn't purchase it expect the machine not to konk out after a couple of years (the reason why I didn't get it; been reliable machine so far). If my eMac does die, then I will try to get Apple to replace the motherboard. Otherwise, I will be one angry focker. :mad:

[Maxx Power]

I have one of these 1.25GHz eMac's and I checked the capacitors and nothing was buldging or leaking. Most likely, I'll check again in the next couple of weeks and make sure they aren't leaking or anything.

O and this crap about how you get what your pay for is ********. Having payed $799 for my eMac, I expect it to last a lot longer than 1.5 years. Heck I have a iMac 233MHz G3 still chugging along after 8 years. No problems with that machine. That right there shows you the difference in the Apple machines of today and yesterday. Also, people saying you shoulda got AppleCare is stupid too. Some people (like myself) couldn't afford AppleCare, and people who didn't purchase it expect the machine not to konk out after a couple of years (the reason why I didn't get it; been reliable machine so far). If my eMac does die, then I will try to get Apple to replace the motherboard. Otherwise, I will be one angry focker. :mad:

Exactly, and I guote Homer Simpson "Extended warranty? How could I lose ?"

[joelypolly]

hopefully just a bad batch of capacitors and not a design issue

[kingtj]

If I get a bargain-priced PC for, say, $299 (which is entirely possible nowdays if you shop around for a budget-priced eMachnies Celeron-processor based PC or something similar) - then I'm pretty accepting of the fact that after a year of use, something might fail on it.

To me, though, even the eMac priced at $800-900 is not "budget priced" in the least. It's only "cheap" compared to Apple's other offerings.

The question comes down to this... Does Apple want to embrace the philosophy of "Anything with our logo on it is top quality!", or do they want to embrace the philosophy of "Our lower-end systems aren't built nearly as well as our higher end models. If you're not well-off enough financially to consider our $800 systems cheap - then you're not a customer we care much about."


"You pay for what you get" is pure crap. You paid for the features, speeds, capacities and integration, not the breakage. Therefore, you paid less meaning you will be getting less features, speeds, capacities for your money, not less durable. But you know, if that was the case, you better not buy a mac for a while, because "you pay for what you get" and you are not the one who decides what is the ratio of pay vs. get.

[artifex]

Bad caps on my Soyo motherboard a couple years ago caused my PC's RAM to have glitches, two drives to fail before their warranty expiration, and a video card to get flaky. And, of course, my mobo was the last thing I replaced.

No more Soyo for me. I understand a lot of manufacturers got hurt by the bad caps - but I heard some of them had return programs. Soyo didn't.

[MaaseyRacer]

All these bad capacitors are all so that they can keep prices low on these machines. Google up what these capacitors on these computers are, and what there life expectancy is. For the most part, although the computer industry does not want to mention it this is planned obselesence. This is why they sell extended warranties. If they made the machine right in the first place they would cost way more, and AppleCare would not exist. In the case of the eMac, I do not think Apple will ever do a repair extension for it, I am still not seeing any 1.25GHz eMacs come through that need repairs. However we are seeing about three to five 1.6-2.0GHz G5 iMacs a day, and we live in a fairly small community. All the iMacs either have a blown power supply, or the logic board has blown or swollen capcaictors.

[cosmichobo]

There was no planning involved here. A company somewhere in Asia stole a formula for capacitors that was flawed, produced flawed caps, which were sold industry-wide, including to Apple. Apple used the badcaps in their iMac G5 and eMac G4 computers. For whatever reason, the iMac started showing symptoms immediately, whereas the eMac has taken 18months for the caps to leak.

One school in the USA with 11 computer labs (30+ eMacs each) has reported 80% of the computers showing with badcaps. Several small businesses with 4-12 eMacs have similar % rates. 22% of Apple's eMac forum hits are relating to this issue. And I don't sit around hitting reload all day, I assure you.

In the scale of things - with probably at least 500,000 eMacs made during the period involved, yes, it's small fish. No denying it. Few hundred peeved eMac owners... Who cares really? Apple should. Something like 80% of the people affected are first time Mac owners. That's a LOT of bad word of mouth from people who have had the courage to make the swap from PC land.

[MicB5]

I don't remember what language we can use here, so I'll just say, Apple really fudged this one up.

I have an eMac as well that has had its share of problems and I am now concerned about this as my warranty will expire soon.

I went through the iBook logic board "me to Apple there is a systemic problem Apple to me it's all in your head Me no it's not Apple Ok you were right it's a logic board defect but we're gonna screw you over anyway and claim water damage" fiasco and I don't wanna again.

Does Apple have spotty quality worse than other PC makers, or do we just bring it to the light cos we have a community?

Hi swinger
get the extended warranty NOW.Once warranty expires you're S.O.L and Apple Care turns to Apple Don't Care.

[MicB5]

hopefully just a bad batch of capacitors and not a design issue

I think that is exactly right.bad caps and Apples are not the only computers
that got them. The problem is not so much the caps as Apples handling of the situation to date. Apple needs to fix this on ALL thier models that have bad caps. As for MasseyRacer he must have more money than I do if he thinks
$1000 as "cheap".

[Counterfit]

I don't remember what language we can use here, so I'll just say, Apple really fudged this one up.
The profanity filter is there for a reason. I let it do it's own ****ing work. :p
For the most part, although the computer industry does not want to mention it this is planned obselesence. This is why they sell extended warranties.
Well, this isn't so much "obsolescence" as much as "death". ;)

[emac kinda guy]

I just got the following notice for my Dell at work:

In some government departments, the Dell GX270 computer has encountered problems with the mother board. Dell has agreed to replace the mother board on all of their GX270 desktops at no cost to the departments.

There are approximately 5700 computers of the Dell GX270 model within the Managed Environment that will be effected.

Nice of Dell to do that. Apple?

Probably the same capacitors Dell uses. At our company our Optiplex GX270s and other models were suffering from many blown and buldging capacitors. Dell claimed it was a bad lot and fixed many monther boards in 24 hours, a few on site.

So I guess there is a new QC manager position opening at Capacitor Corp!

[Zygon Gambit]

My eMac has just started to exhibit this problem. At the moment turning it off and on again stops the problem for a few hours: but it gets continually worse by the hour each time I see it.

For me, the screen is full of little horizontal lines, that are only seen when something is moving, from the track position marker in iTunes to playing a DVD. Whenever any graphics are moving, the lines are around.

Now I've just got to wait until it gets bad enough to be seen whenever the machine is turned on every time. Then off I lug it to the Apple Shop, and demonstrate, and get it repaired (and my Applecare will be used for something!)

[emac kinda guy]

I picked up my eMac with a new mother board a few hours ago. Everything is working beautifully. Worlds of Warcraft runs great. Thank you Apple.

A thread with a happy ending. :)

See: http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=211525



My eMac has just started to exhibit this problem. At the moment turning it off and on again stops the problem for a few hours: but it gets continually worse by the hour each time I see it.

For me, the screen is full of little horizontal lines, that are only seen when something is moving, from the track position marker in iTunes to playing a DVD. Whenever any graphics are moving, the lines are around.

Now I've just got to wait until it gets bad enough to be seen whenever the machine is turned on every time. Then off I lug it to the Apple Shop, and demonstrate, and get it repaired (and my Applecare will be used for something!)